Republic of the Philippines

Province of Bohol
Municipality of Talibon
TALIBON POLYTECHNIC COLLEGE
San Isidro, Talibon, Bohol

ELS 107
ENGLISH DISCOURSE:
LEARNING MODULES
SY 2020-2021
FIRST SEMESTER

CONTENTS:
MODULE 1: BASICS OF DISCOURSE
MODULE 2: DISCOURSE AND GRAMMAR
MODULE 3: DISCOURSE AND VOCABULARY
MODULE 4: DISCOURSE AND PHONOLOGY
MODULE 5: DISCOURSE IN CONVERSATION
MODULE 6: GENRE IN DISCOURSE

Prepared by:

GISELO B. CAJES PhD

Instructor

Checked by:

NEIL NOLAN B. CAJES

Program Head

Noted by:

MARCELINA A. SALES PhD

VP for Academic Affairs

Approved by:

MARIA FE. P. COMAHIG PhD

College President
i
SUBJECT
LEARNING MODULE ORIENTATION

Learners of discourse, another frontier in learning about language is offered to you

through the course on ENLGISH DISCOURSE.
For the duration of the whole semester, you are expected to complete the six modules
in the module set pertaining to the different areas of studies in stylistics.
Each of the module is composed of lessons focusing on different subtopics which you
are expected to examine, answer and learn from.
The lesson sheets, aside from its title and lesson objectives, is comprised of six parts:
1 ACTIVATE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE (where you are engaged in a short recall of your
previous knowledge on the matter to be discussed in the lesson that would somehow
motivate you and align you with the lesson discussion)
2 ACQUIRE NEW KNOWLEDGE (where you are expected to read and study the different
points regarding the lesson)
3 APPLY YOUR ACQUIRED KNOWLEDGE (where you apply the lesson you gained from
the lecture proper for you to be able to hone your skill in discourse and its analysis)
4 TEST YOUR UNDERSTANDING (where you take a test or a set of tests to check on how
much you have gained throughout the lesson)
5 YOUR ASSIGNMENT (where you are provided with more avenue for practice which may/
may not involve researches; this portion may require you to do some analysis of
magazine articles, newspapers articles and movie clips, and thus, you must have some
of these readily available)
6 EVALUATE YOUR UNDERSTANDING (where you check yourself on how much you have
gained out of the lesson you have undertaken to give me an idea of your level of
understanding)
In each lesson, you must be able to complete answering parts 4 to 6 because these parts
will be checked and recorded as bases for your grades.
After each module, you are tasked to produce an output with specifications and criteria
indicated in the “Module Output” part and to reflect on your recognition of the significance of
discourse in the “Module Reflection” portion.

Please be guided by the course syllabus attached for more information about the subject.
I am hoping that these guidelines are clear to you. If you have questions regarding the
lesson, I would be reached at my number (09214820443 – TNT) and account (Giselo Cajes –
FB Messenger).
Please send me also a copy of your personal information and contact details. Be assued
that these information will be kept confidential. Indicate it in the form in the next page.
May this semester bring you better understanding of the English language.

- GISELO B. CAJES PhD

Instructor

ii
 STUDENT’S PERSONAL INFORMATION SHEET

Fill in the blanks with the necessary information. (Paste picture here)

Mary joy Aliviado

Name: _____________________________________________________________

BAEL 3
Course and Year: __________________________________________________

San jose, Talibon, Bohol

Address: __________________________________________________________

09089780027
Contact Number/s: _______________________________________________

Mary Joy Servano Aliviado

FB Account: ______________________________________________________

______________________________
Signature over Printed Name

iii
 Republic of the Philippines
Province of Bohol
Municipality of Talibon
TALIBON POLYTECHNIC COLLEGE
San Isidro, Talibon, Bohol

ELS 107
ENGLISH DISCOURSE

MODULE I
BASICS OF DISCOURSE
(WEEK 1 to 4)

Discourse analysis is concerned with the study of the relationship between language
and the contexts in which it is used. It grew out of work in different disciplines in the 1960s
and early 1970s, including linguistics, semiotics, psychology, anthropology and sociology.
Discourse analysts study language in use: written texts of all kinds, and spoken data, from
conversation to highly institutionalized forms of talk.
In this module, some of the basic concepts of the study of discourse will be focused on
together through a variety of activities for you to undergo and accomplish.
At the end of the module, you are expected to do a rough discourse analysis on the
precepts of the basics discussed herewith using an authentic text and movie conversation
transcripts.

Module Objectives:
At the end of the module, you are expected to do the following with at least 80 percent
accuracy:
1. Define discourse and its basic concepts
2. Analyse texts given based on the discussed aspects of discourse
3. Evaluate spoken and written texts
4. Reflect on the significance of the study of discourse in better understanding of spoken
and written texts

Contents:
Week 1
Lesson 1: DEFINITION OF DISCOURSE
Lesson 2: DISCOURSE ANALYSIS
Week 2
Lesson 3: FORM, FUNCTION AND STRUCTURE
Lesson 4: SPEECH ACTS
Week 3
Lesson 5: REGISTER
Lesson 6: GENRE
Week 4
Lesson 7: SPOKEN DISCOURSE
Lesson 8: WRITTEN DISCOURSE
iv
 MODULE 1. LESSON 1.
DEFINITION OF DISCOURSE
Lesson Objectives: Define discourse as a branch of language study
Appreciate the significance of discourse

A Activate Your Prior Knowledge

Read this word.

course
What comes first to your mind when you read this word? You may think of your
college course. But what if it is used in a sentence such as below:
Just follow the natural course of action.
Right. The word “course” is a word with multiple meaning and we could only better
understand such word when put in a context. The study of context, from the adjacent clues
in a text or the actual situation by which it is said, as applied in language studies is mainly
the focus of discourse.
What is discourse?

B Acquire New Knowledge

Definition and Examples of Discourse

In linguistics, discourse refers to a unit of language longer than a single sentence. The
word discourse is derived from the Latin prefix dis- meaning "away" and the root
word currere meaning "to run". Discourse, therefore, translates to "run away" and refers to the
way that conversations flow. To study discourse is to analyze the use of spoken or written
language in a social context.
Discourse studies look at the form and function of language in conversation beyond its
small grammatical pieces such as phonemes and morphemes. This field of study, which Dutch
linguist Teun van Dijk is largely responsible for developing, is interested in how larger units of
language—including lexemes, syntax, and context—contribute meaning to conversations.
Discourse is any written or spoken communication. Discourse can also be described as
the expression of thought through language. While discourse can refer to the smallest act of
communication, the analysis can be quite complex. Several scholars in many different
disciplines have theorized about the different types and functions of discourse.
"Discourse in context may consist of only one or two words as in stop or no smoking.
Alternatively, a piece of discourse can be hundreds of thousands of words in length, as some
novels are. A typical piece of discourse is somewhere between these two extremes," (Hinkel and
Fotos 2001).
"Discourse is the way in which language is used socially to convey broad historical
meanings. It is language identified by the social conditions of its use, by who is using it and
under what conditions. Language can never be 'neutral' because it bridges our personal and
social worlds," (Henry and Tator 2002).
Contexts and Topics of Discourse
The study of discourse is entirely context-dependent because conversation involves
situational knowledge beyond just the words spoken. Often times, meaning cannot be
extrapolated from an exchange merely from its verbal utterances because there are many
semantic factors involved in authentic communication.

v
 "The study of discourse...can involve matters like context, background information or
knowledge shared between a speaker and hearer," (Bloor and Bloor 2013).
Subcategories of Discourse
"Discourse can...be used to refer to particular contexts of language use, and in this
sense, it becomes similar to concepts like genre or text type. For example, we can conceptualize
political discourse (the sort of language used in political contexts) or media discourse (language
used in the media).
In addition, some writers have conceived of discourse as related to particular topics,
such as an environmental discourse or colonial discourse...Such labels sometimes suggest a
particular attitude towards a topic (e.g. people engaging in environmental discourse would
generally be expected to be concerned with protecting the environment rather than wasting
resources). Related to this, Foucault...defines discourse more ideologically as 'practices which
systematically form the objects of which they speak'," (Baker and Ellece 2013).
Significance of Discourse in Literature
Discourse of any type is one of the most important elements of human behavior and
formation. Countless studies have been done on the way the brain shapes thoughts into words
and, indeed, the way that communication shapes the brain. Many studies have specifically
targeted the way that speakers of different languages understand concepts differently. Thus,
the creation and dispersion of discourse is of the utmost importance to the perpetuation of the
human race. Literature is one of the primary ways of maintaining a record of discourse and
creating new ways of understanding the world. By reading texts from other cultures and other
time periods, we are better able to understand the way in which the authors of those texts
thought. Indeed, reading literature from our own ostensible cultures can better highlight the
ways in which we think and interact. Since each piece of literature ever created is an example
of discourse, our understanding of discourse is vital to our understanding of literature.
Examples of Discourse in Literature
Example #1
MACBETH: She should have died hereafter;
There would have been a time for such a word.
— To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury
Signifying nothing.
(Macbeth by William Shakespeare)
In this beautiful and haunting soliloquy from William Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth,
the character of Macbeth is lamenting the death of his wife, Lady Macbeth. In this poetic
discourse (comprises creative, fictional writing), Shakespeare uses many different literary
devices in this poetic discourse example, such as repetition in “To-morrow, and to-morrow,
and to-morrow,” as well as imagery and metaphor. The function of this passage is primarily to
make the audience feel strong emotion, even catharsis, as Macbeth thinks about what could
have been.
Example #2
The Sun never shined on a cause of greater worth. ‘Tis not the affair of a City,
a County, a Province, or a Kingdom; but of a Continent — of at least one-eighth part
of the habitable Globe. ‘Tis not the concern of a day, a year, or an age; posterity are
virtually involved in the contest, and will be more or less affected even to the end of
vi
 time, by the proceedings now. Now is the seed-time of Continental union, faith and
honour. The least fracture now will be like a name engraved with the point of a pin
on the tender rind of a young oak; the wound would enlarge with the tree, and
posterity read in it full grown characters.
(“Common Sense” by Thomas Paine)
Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” is an excellent example of transactional discourse
(used to propel something into action). In his essay, Paine lays out the reasons that the
American colonies should rebel against Great Britain. Paine relies mostly on the discourse of
argument, but also calls on the emotions of his readers in this passage by asking them to think
of how much territory is at stake. Paine uses literary devices such as imagery and simile as
well in invoking the image of the colonies as a young oak,
Example #3
In the meantime, things are getting more and more wonderful here. I think,
Kitty, that true love may be developing in the Annex. All those jokes about marrying
Peter if we stayed here long enough weren’t so silly after all. Not that I’m thinking
of marrying him, mind you. I don’t even know what he’ll be like when he grows up.
Or if we’ll even love each other enough to get married.
(The Diary of Anne Frank by Anne Frank)
Anne Frank’s diary is one of the most famous examples of expressive discourse (acts
of literary writing that is creative, yet non-fiction). Anne Frank was in hiding during World
War II for many years in an Annex in Amsterdam, and spent her time recording her emotions
and thoughts in her diary, which she named Kitty. We can see that the entries are non-
fiction—that is, she truly lived them—but they are creative and expressive all the same.

C Apply Your Acquired Knowledge

EXERCISE 1: Match the following descriptions of discourse (Column A) with the language
personalities (Column B). Write the letter of the best answer.
Column A Column B
1. Discourse in context may consist of only one or two words or a. Teun van Dijk
a piece of discourse can be hundreds of thousands of words in 3
length.
2. The study of discourse...can involve matters like context, b. Hinkel and Fotos
background information or knowledge shared between a (2001)
speaker and hearer 1
3. Discourse is interested in how larger units of language— c. Henry and Tator
including lexemes, syntax, and context—contribute meaning to (2002)
conversations. 4
4. Discourse is the way in which language is used socially to d. Bloor and Bloor (2013)
convey broad historical meanings. 2
5. Discourse refers to practices which systematically form the e. Foucault
objects of which they speak 5
EXERCISE 2: Find commonality (words or phrases) in the definitions given. Then, synthesize
the descriptions given by linguists above into your definition of discourse written in your own
words.

vii
 D Evaluate Your Understanding

TEST: Answer the following items.

1. Discuss the etymology of the word “discourse”. How is it significance to the study of
discourse?
2. How is discourse predictive of human behaviour and formation?
3. Elaborate on this statement: “Reading literature from our own ostensible cultures can
better highlight the ways in which we think and interact.” Could you give a Philippine literary
piece that exemplifies this phenomenon?
4. Could we separate understanding literature with understanding culture and time periods?
Why or why not?
5. In your own words therefore, how is the study of discourse significant in literature?

E Your Assignment

Find more definitions of discourse from at least three other sources (indicate the
author and the source of information). Tell its similarities and differences with the previously
given definitions.

F Evaluate Your Understanding

How much have you learned from this lesson? Check the appropriate box below based
on your level of understanding rated from 1 (the lowest) to 10 (the highest).
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

viii
 MODULE 1. LESSON 2.
DISCOURSE ANALYSIS
Lesson Objectives: Define discourse analysis and its concerns
Distinguish discourse analysis from linguistic analyses

A Activate Your Prior Knowledge

Read the two conversations below.

Conversation A Conversation B
It seems too
Damn it, overrated, don’t
dude! you think?
No, really! Yes, I do!

It would not be hard to imagine at what context the two characters. Are they close
friends or just acquaintances? Are they in a formal or informal conversational situation? As
was said, such was a concern of discourse analysts.
For this course, we learn how to analyse discourse in its different aspects. But first,
let’s define what discourse analysis is.

B Acquire New Knowledge

Discourse analysis is a research method for studying written or spoken language in

relation to its social context. It aims to understand how language is used in real life situations.
When you do discourse analysis, you might focus on:
 The purposes and effects of different types of language
 Cultural rules and conventions in communication
 How values, beliefs and assumptions are communicated
 How language use relates to its social, political and historical context
Discourse analysis is a common qualitative research method in many humanities and
social science disciplines, including linguistics, sociology, anthropology, psychology and
cultural studies.
One starting point is the following quotation from M. Stubbs' textbook (Stubbs, 1983), in
which discourse analysis is defined as:
(a) concerned with language use beyond the boundaries of a sentence/utterance;
(b) concerned with the interrelationships between language and society; and
(c) concerned with the interactive or dialogic properties of everyday communication.

ix
What is discourse analysis used for?
Conducting discourse analysis means examining how language functions and how
meaning is created in different social contexts. It can be applied to any instance of written or
oral language, as well as non-verbal aspects of communication such as tone and gestures.
Discourse analysis is sometimes defined as the analysis of language 'beyond the
sentence'. This contrasts with types of analysis more typical of modern linguistics, which are
chiefly concerned with the study of grammar: the study of smaller bits of language, such as
sounds (phonetics and phonology), parts of words (morphology), meaning (semantics), and the
order of words in sentences (syntax). Discourse analysts study larger chunks of language as
they flow together.
Materials that are suitable for discourse analysis include:
- Books, newspapers and periodicals
- Marketing material, such as brochures and advertisements
- Business and government documents
- Websites, forums, social media posts and comments
- Interviews and conversations
By analyzing these types of discourse, researchers aim to gain an understanding of social
groups and how they communicate.

How is discourse analysis different from other methods?

Unlike linguistic approaches that focus only on the rules of language use, discourse
analysis emphasizes the contextual meaning of language.
It focuses on the social aspects of communication and the ways people use language to
achieve specific effects (e.g. to build trust, to create doubt, to evoke emotions, or to manage
conflict).
Instead of focusing on smaller units of language, such as sounds, words or phrases,
discourse analysis is used to study larger chunks of language, such as entire conversations,
texts, or collections of texts. The selected sources can be analyzed on multiple levels.
Discourse Analysis
Level of
What is analyzed?
communication
Vocabulary Words and phrases can be analyzed for ideological associations,
formality, and euphemistic and metaphorical content.
Grammar The way that sentences are constructed (e.g. verb tenses, active or
passive construction, and the use of imperatives and questions) can
reveal aspects of intended meaning.
Structure The structure of a text can be analyzed for how it creates emphasis
or builds a narrative.
Genre Texts can be analyzed in relation to the conventions and
communicative aims of their genre (e.g. political speeches or tabloid
newspaper articles).
Non-verbal Non-verbal aspects of speech, such as tone of voice, pauses,
communication gestures, and sounds like “um”, can reveal aspects of a speaker’s
intentions, attitudes, and emotions.
Conversational The interaction between people in a conversation, such as turn-
codes taking, interruptions and listener response, can reveal aspects of
cultural conventions and social roles.

x
 C Apply Your Acquired Knowledge

EXERCISE: Tell whether the following are undertaking discourse analysis or not. Tell why.
1. Riza wanted to create an APA transcription of the sentences in a poem she found.
2. Matthew tried to find out the difference of the use of direct speech and reported speech in
news reporting.
3. Ramon inquired about the difference of the concepts of the term “love” between western
and Asian countries.
4. Hillary determined lexical morphemes and grammatical morphemes in a set of words
given.
5. Cora analysed the morphological composition of contractions and how its use affects its
formality.
6. Mary endeavoured to create a timeline of the life of a Hollywood movie star based on his
interview in a local TV station using the tenses of verbs that the actor used.
7. Jack compared the language use of winning and losing politicians in a recently concluded
election.
8. Gerry divided the sentences in a text into clauses to determine its type of sentence
according to structure.
9. Miles took up a random sentences from a novel and analysed about its notions.
10. Liza studied about the use or non-use of teachers to reinforce their lecture.

D Evaluate Your Understanding

TEST: Answer the following items.

1. What is discourse analysis?
2. What are the concerns of discourse analysis according to Stubbs (1982)?
3. What levels of communication are analysed in discourse analysis?
4. How is discourse analysis different from phonological, morphological, syntactic and
semantic analysis?

E Your Assignment

Answer this: “Is discourse analysis an important skill for a language student like you
should learn? Why or why not”

F Evaluate Your Understanding

How much have you learned from this lesson? Check the appropriate box below based
on your level of understanding rated from 1 (the lowest) to 10 (the highest).
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

xi
 MODULE 1. LESSON 3.
FORM, FUNCTION, AND STRUCTURE
Lesson Objectives: Define form, function, speech act and structure of texts
Transform texts to specified form and function
Analyse structure of given texts

A Activate Your Prior Knowledge

Check out the excerpt below from “Through the Looking Glass”, a sequel of Lewis
Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventure in Wonderland”.

'I only said "if"!' poor Alice pleaded in a piteous tone. The two Queens looked at each
other, and the Red Queen remarked, with a little shudder, 'She says she only said "if"-'
'But she said a great deal more than that!' the White Queen moaned, wringing her hands.
'Oh, ever so much more than that!'

Why would the queen insinuate that Alice has been saying more than what she said
using the word “if”? It would be hard for us to understand but there must be something that
happened or was inferred by the White Queen before this conversation that make her say that
Alice said “more than” what she said. And how did Alice deliver phonologically her “if”
statement before this conversation? It may also have implied something to the queen because
the way we say words would mean different depending on the tone that we say it.
We can only judge the correctness of the speculations of the White Queen if we
understand its context, a matter of concern to discourse analysis.

B Acquire New Knowledge

The famous British comedy duo, Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise, started one of their
shows in 1973 with the following dialogue:

(1) Ernie: Tell 'em about the show.

Eric (to the audience) : Have we got a show for

you tonight folks! Have we got a show for you!
(aside to Ernie) Have we got a show for them?

This short dialogue raises a number of problems for

anyone wishing to do a linguistic analysis of it; not least is the
question of why it is funny (the audience laughed at Eric's
question to Ernie). Most people would agree that it is funny
because Eric is playing with a grammatical structure or form
that seems to be ambiguous: 'Have we got a show for you!' has
an inverted verb and subject.

Inversion of the verb and its subject happens only under restricted conditions in
English; the most typical circumstances in which this happens is when questions are being
asked, but it also happens in exclamations (e.g. 'Wasn't my face red!').
xii
 So Eric's repeated grammatical form clearly undergoes a change in how it is interpreted
by the audience between its second and third occurrence in the dialogue. Eric's inverted
grammatical form in its first two occurrences clearly has the function of an exclamation, telling
the audience something, not asking them anything, until the humorous moment when he
begins to doubt whether they do have a show to offer, at which point he uses the same
grammatical form to ask Ernie a genuine question. There seems, then, to be a lack of one-to-
one correspondence between grammatical form and communicative function; the inverted form
in itself does not inherently carry an exclamatory or a questioning function.

By the same token, in other situations, an' uninverted declarative form (subject before
verb), typically associated with 'statements', might be heard as a question requiring an answer:

(2) A: You're leaving for London.

B: Yes, immediately.

So how we interpret grammatical forms depends on a number of factors, some linguistic,

some purely situational. One linguistic feature that may affect our interpretation is the
intonation. In the Eric and Ernie sketch, Eric's intonation was as follows:

(3)

Two variables in Eric's delivery change. Firstly, the tone contour, i.e. the direction of his
pitch, whether it rises or falls, changes (his last utterance, 'have we got a show for them' ends
in a rising tone). Secondly, his voice jumps to a higher pitch level (represented here by writing
have above the line). Is it this which makes his utterance a question? Not necessarily. Many
questions have only falling tones, as in the following:

(4) A: What was he wearing?

B: An anorak.

A: But was it his?

So the intonation does not inherently carry the function of question either, any more
than the inversion of auxiliary verb and subject did.

Grammatical forms and phonological forms examined separately are unreliable

indicators of function; when they are taken together, and looked at in context, we can come to
some decision about function. So decisions about communicative function cannot solely be the
domain of grammar or phonology. Discourse analysis is not entirely separate from the study
of grammar and phonology, but discourse analysts are interested in a lot more than linguistic
forms. Their concerns include how it is that Eric and Ernie interpret each other's grammar
appropriately (Ernie commands Eric to tell the audience, Eric asks Ernie a question, etc.), how
it is that the dialogue between the two comics is coherent and not gobbledy- gook, what Eric

xiii
and Ernie's roles are in relation to one another, and what sort of 'rules' or conventions they
are following as they converse with one another.

Eric and Ernie's conversation is only one example (and a rather crazy one at that) of
spoken interaction; most of us in a typical week will observe or take part in a wide range of
different types of spoken interaction: phone calls, buying things in shops, perhaps an interview
for a job, or with a doctor, or with an employer, talking formally at meetings or in classrooms,
informally in cafes or on buses, or intimately with our friends and loved ones. These situations
will have their own formulae and conventions which we follow; they will have different ways of
opening and closing the encounter, different role relationships, different purposes and different
settings. Discourse analysis is interested in all these different factors and tries to account for
them in a rigorous fashion with a separate set of descriptive labels from those used by
conventional grammarians.

The first fundamental distinction we have noted is between language forms and
discourse functions; once we have made this distinction a lot of other conclusions can follow,
and the labels used to describe discourse need not clash at all with those we are all used to in
grammar. They will in fact complement and enrich each other.

Speech Acts and Discourse structures

When we say that a particular bit of speech or writing is a request or an instruction or

an exemplification we are concentrating on what that piece of language is doing, or how the
listener/reader is supposed to react; for this reason, such entities are often also called speech
acts. Each of the stretches of language that are carrying the force of requesting, instructing,
and so on is seen as performing a particular act; Eric's exclamation was performing the act of
informing the audience that a great show was in store for them. So the approach to
communicative language teaching that emphasises the functions or speech acts that pieces of
language perform overlaps in an important sense with the preoccupations of discourse
analysts.

When we speak or write, we do not just utter a string of linguistic forms, without
beginning, middle or end, and anyway, we have already demonstrated the difficulty of assigning
a function to a particular form of grammar and/or vocabulary. If we had taken Eric's words
'have we got a show for you' and treated them as a sentence, written on a page (perhaps to
exemplify a particular structure, or particular vocabulary), it would have been impossible to
attach a functional label to it with absolute certainty other than to say that in a large number
of contexts this would most typically be heard as a question.

The discourse analyst is much more interested in the process by which, for example, an
inverted verb and subject come to be heard as an informing speech act, and to get at this, we
must have our speech acts fully contextualised both in terms of the surrounding text and of
the key features of the situation. Discourse analysis is thus fundamentally concerned with
the relationship between language and the contexts of its use.

And there is more to the story than merely labelling chains of speech acts. Firstly, as
we have said, discourses have beginnings, middles and ends. How is it, for example, that we
feel that we are coming in in the middle of this conversation and leaving it before it has ended?

xiv
(5) A: Well, try this spray, what I got, this is the biggest they come.

B: Oh.. .

A: . . . little make-up capsule.

B: Oh, right, it's like these inhalers, isn't it?

A: And I, I've found that not so bad since I've been using it, and it doesn't make
you so grumpy.

B: This is up your nose?

A: Mm.

B: Oh, wow! It looks a bit sort of violent, doesn't it? It works well, does it?

(Birmingham Collection of English Text)

Our immediate reaction is that conversations can often begin with well, but that there
is something odd about 'try this spray . . .'. Suggesting to someone 'try X' usually only occurs
in response to some remark or event or perceived state of affairs that warrants intervention,
and such information is lacking here.

Equally, we interpret B's final remark, 'It works well, does it?' as expecting a response
from A. In addition, we might say that we do not expect people to leave the question of
whether something is a fitting solution to a problem that has been raised dangling in the air.

The difficulty is not only the attaching of speech-act-labels to utterances. The main
problem with making a neat analysis of extract (5) is that it is clearly the 'middle' of
something, which makes some features difficult to interpret. For instance, -why does A say
“well” at the beginning of his/her turn? What are “these inhalers”? Are they inhalers on the
table in front of the speakers?, or ones we all know about in the shops? Why does A change
from talking about “this spray” to that in a short space of the dialogue? The dialogue is
structured in the sense that it can be coherently interpreted and seems to be progressing
somewhere, but we are in the middle of a structure rather than witnessing the complete
unfolding of the whole. It is in this respect, the interest in whole discourse structures, that
discourse analysis adds something extra to the traditional concern with functional speech
acts.

C Apply Your Acquired Knowledge

EXERCISE 1. Can you create a context and suggest an intonation for the forms in the left-
hand column so that they would be heard as performing the functions in the right-hand
columns, without changing their grammatical structure?

1. wasn’t it the splendid (a) question (b) exclamation

2. I taught you about that (a) question (b) statement

xv
3. you told him (a) statement (b) command

4. read his letter (a) command (b) question

EXERCISE 2. What clues are there in the following extract which suggest that we are coming
in in the middle of something? What other problems are there in interpreting individual
words?

A: I mean, I don't like this new emblem at all.

B: The logo.

A: Yeah, the castle on the Trent, it's horrible.

C: Did you get a chance to talk to him?

A: Yeah.

C: How does he seem?

D Evaluate Your Understanding

TEST: Answer the following questions.

1. How to you define form of speech? How about function?
2. How would you explain the disparity between form and function? You may cite from the
examples given in the discussion.
3. What is meant by speech acts? Give examples of it.
4. In a discourse structure analysis, how would you know that an extracted dialogue is in a
middle of a conversation?
5. Explain this statement: “Discourse analysis is fundamentally concerned with the
relationship between language and the contexts of its use.”

E Your Assignment

Give a sample dialogue from a movie or a story that you have read that may have had
disparity between form and function.

F Evaluate Your Understanding

How much have you learned from this lesson? Check the appropriate box below based
on your level of understanding rated from 1 (the lowest) to 10 (the highest).
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

xvi
 MODULE 1. LESSON 4.
SPEECH ACTS
Lesson Objectives: Identify types and subtypes of speech acts
Find the locutionary, illocutionary and perlocutionary functions of
speech

A Activate Your Prior Knowledge

Match the statements in Column A with its intent in speaking in Column B. (This
portion will be rated as a quiz score so please do answer.)
Column A Column B
1. Hi, Eric. How are things going? a. Request
2. Could you pass me the mashed potatoes, please? b. Invitation
3. I’ve already been waiting three weeks for the computer, and I was c. Greeting
“told it would be delivered within a week.
4. Hey, I really like your tie! d. Complaint
5. We’re having some people over Saturday evening and wanted to e. Refusal
know if you’d like to join us.

Each of the statements in column B has their own specific functions. These are part of
the discourse study on speech acts.

B Acquire New Knowledge

Speech act is something expressed by an individual that not only presents information,
but performs an action as well. For example, the phrase "I would like the kimchi, could you
please pass it to me?" is considered a speech act as it expresses the speaker's desire to acquire
the kimchi, as well as presenting a request that someone pass the kimchi to them.
According to Kent Bach, "almost any speech act is really the performance of several acts
at once, distinguished by different aspects of the speaker's intention: there is the act of saying
something, what one does in saying it, such as requesting or promising, and how one is trying
to affect one's audience”.
Speech acts serve their function once they are said or communicated. These are
commonly taken to include acts such as apologizing, promising, ordering, answering,
requesting, complaining, warning, inviting, refusing, and congratulating.
Speech acts are commonplace in everyday interactions and are important for
communication, as well as present in many different contexts. Examples of these include:
 "You're fired!" expresses both the employment status of the individual in question, as
well as the action by which said person's employment is ended.
 "I hereby appoint you as chairman" expresses both the status of the individual as
chairman, and is the action which promotes the individual to this position.
 "We ask that you extinguish your cigarettes at this time, and bring your tray tables and
seatbacks to an upright position." This statement describes the requirements of the
current location, such as an airplane, while also issuing the command to stop smoking
and to sit up straight.
 "Would it be too much trouble for me to ask you to hand me that wrench?" functions to
simultaneously ask two questions. The first is to ask the listener if they are capable of
passing the wrench, while the second is an actual request.
xvii
  "Well, would you listen to that?" acts as a question, requesting that a listener heed
what is being said by the speaker, but also as an exclamation of disbelief or shock.
Three Levels of Speech Acts
Locutionary act - the performance of
an utterance: the actual utterance and its
apparent meaning, comprising any and all of its
verbal, social, and rhetorical meanings, all of
which correspond to the verbal, syntactic and
semantic aspects of any meaningful utterance;

Illocutionary act - the active result of the implied

request or meaning presented by the locutionary
act. For example, if the locutionary act in an
interaction is the question "Is there any salt?" the implied illocutionary request is "Can
someone pass the salt to me?"

Perlocutionary act - the actual effect of the locutionary and illocutionary acts, such as
persuading, convincing, scaring, enlightening, inspiring, or otherwise getting someone to do
or realize something, whether intended or not.

In general, the locutionary act is the act of saying something with a certain sense and
reference; the illocutionary act is the act performed in saying something, i.e. the act named
and identified by the explicit performative verb. The perlocutionary act is the act performed
by, or as a consequence of, saying something.

Act (A) or Locution

He said to me ' Shoot her!' meaning by 'shoot' shoot and referring by 'her ' to her
Act (B) or Illocution
He urged (or advised, ordered, & c.) me to shoot her.
Act (C. a) or perlocution
He persuaded me to shoot her.
Act (C. b)
He got me to (or made me, & c) shoot her.

All three acts are usually performed at the same time, and Austin (1962) distinguished
them for the sake of analysis.

Types of Locutionary Acts

Locutionary acts can be broken into two basic types: utterance acts and propositional
acts.
An utterance act is a speech act that consists of the verbal employment of units of
expression such as words and sentences. Put another way, utterance acts are acts in which
something is said (or a sound is made) that may not have any meaning.
By contrast, propositional acts are those, as Searle noted, where a particular reference
is made. Propositional acts are clear and express a specific definable point, as opposed to
mere utterance acts, which may be unintelligible sounds.

Types of Illocutionary Acts

A. Assertive: an illocutionary act that represents a state of affairs.
E.g. stating, claiming, hypothesizing, describing, telling, insisting,
suggesting, asserting, or swearing that something is the case

xviii
B. Directive: an illocutionary act for getting the addressee to do something.
E.g. ordering, commanding, daring, defying, challenging
C. Commissive: an illocutionary act for getting the speaker (i.e. the one performing the speech
act) to do something.
E.g. promising, threatening, intending, vowing to do or to refrain from doing something
D. Expressive: an illocutionary act that expresses the mental state of the speaker about an
event presumed to be true..
E.g. congratulating, thanking, deploring, condoling, welcoming, apologizing
E. Declaration: an illocutionary act that brings into existence the state of affairs to which it
refers.
E.g. blessing, firing, baptizing, bidding, passing sentence, excommunicating
Perlocutionary Acts
While illocutionary acts relate more to the speaker, perlocutionary acts are centered
around the listener. Perlocutionary acts always have a 'perlocutionary effect' which is the
effect a speech act has on a listener. This could affect the listener's thoughts, emotions or
even their physical actions. An example of this could be if someone uttered the sentence "I'm
hungry." The perlocutionary effect on the listener could be the effect of being persuaded by
the utterance. For example, after hearing the utterance, the listener could be persuaded to
make a sandwich for the speaker.
In speech-act theory, a perlocutionary act is an action or state of mind brought about
by, or as a consequence of, saying something. It is also known as a perlocutionary effect.
"The distinction between the illocutionary act and the perlocutionary act is important," says
Ruth M. Kempson:
"The perlocutionary act is the consequent effect on the hearer which the speaker
intends should follow from his utterance."

C Apply Your Acquired Knowledge

EXERCISE 1: Assign the italicized verbs of the following sentences to one of the five
categories of illocution.
1. I hereby testify that I sold that property on July 3, l989.
2. I praise you for receiving the Pulitzer Prize.
3. I pass. (Said while playing bridge)
4. If you need a ride, I offer to drive you to the airport.
5. I request that you be here tomorrow one-half hour earlier.
6. I permit you to camp out on my front lawn.
7. I recommend that you eat less foods with cholesterol.
8. I pledge to donate $500 to your favorite charity.
9. I maintain that Mickey Mouse is a national hero.
10. I bless the two of you. (Said by a priest during the marriage ceremony)
11. I abbreviate the Committee for Untested Trials and Experiments as CUTE.
12. I beg you not to go out during this hurricane.
13. I curse the day you were born.
14. I name this dog Butchie.
15. I compliment you on your excellent choice of wine.
16. I predict that there will be a stock market crash later this year.
17. I acknowledge that I promised to take you to Las Vegas.
18. I implore you to leave that no-good husband of yours.
19. I require my students to do homework assignments.
20. I honor you for winning a gold metal in the Olympics.

xix
EXERCISE 2: Explain about the locutionary, illocutionary, and perlocutionary acts of the
following sentences.
1. Come here.
2. I am God’s creation.
3. I pronounce you husband and wife.
4. Could I have your number?
5. She loves cakes.

D Evaluate Your Understanding

TEST: Complete the following sentences by filling in the blanks with the correct answer.
1. ______________ is something expressed by an individual that not only presents information,
but performs an action as well.
2. ______________ is the act of saying something with a certain sense and reference.
3. An action or state of mind brought about by, or as a consequence of, saying something is
known as ______________.
4. ______________ is the active result of the implied request or meaning presented by the
locutionary act.
5. ______________ is an illocutionary act for getting the addressee to do something.
6. ______________ is an illocutionary act that brings into existence the state of affairs to which
it refers.
7. ______________ is an illocutionary act that represents a state of affairs.
8. ______________ is an action or state of mind brought about by, or as a consequence of,
saying something.
9. An _______________ is a speech act that consists of the verbal employment of units of
expression such as words and sentences.
10. ______________ refers to the type of locutionary act where a particular reference is made.

E Your Assignment

Find and watch a clip of any one of the following famous lines from a movie. Discuss
about its locution, illocution and perlocution.
 “Jack, I’m flying!” – Titanic
 “…Life’s a box of chocolates. You’ll never know what you’re gonna get.” – Forrest
Gump
 ““Carpe diem. Seize the day, boys. Make your lives extraordinary.” – Dead Poets
Society

F Evaluate Your Understanding

How much have you learned from this lesson? Check the appropriate box below based
on your level of understanding rated from 1 (the lowest) to 10 (the highest).
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

xx
 MODULE 1. LESSON 5.
REGISTER
Lesson Objectives: Define register and its aspects
Determine register in speech transcripts

A Activate Your Prior Knowledge

Read an excerpt from Abraham Lincoln’s speech, “Gettysburg Address”. Answer the
following questions.
"Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this
continent a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the
proposition that all men are created equal.”
 What is the text about?
 What is the relationship between the author and the reader?
 How is the text constructed?
Answering these questions leads you to an analysis of register.

B Acquire New Knowledge

Register is frequently defined as the level of formality of language. According to

systematic-functional linguistics (Halliday, 1994), register actually involves three variables:
field, tenor, and mode.

Field refers to the social

activity in which the language
is being used and what is
being talked about. Field is
reflected in choices of content
words.
Field of discourse is
defined as “the total event, in
which the text is functioning,
together with the purposive
activity of the speaker or
writer; it thus includes the
subject-matter as one element
in it”. The field describes
activities and processes that
are happening at the time of
speech. The analysis of this
parameter focuses on the
entire situation, e.g. when a
mother talks to her child.
Tenor is concerned with the roles and relationships of interlocutors. For example, one’s
choice of sentence type to express a request – declarative, interrogative, imperative – would be
conditioned by the nature of the relationship between the person making the request and the
person being asked to fulfil it.
Tenor of discourse describes the people that take part in an event as well as their
relationships and statuses. “The tenor refers to the type of role interaction, the set of relevant
xxi
social relations, permanent and temporary, among the participants involved”. There might be
a specific hierarchy between the interlocutors, e.g. when the head of a business talks to an
employee, or they may have only a temporary relationship, e.g. when a person asks an
unknown pedestrian for the time.
The mode refers to the channel of communication, whether the language is written or
spoken and, with regard to the latter, whether it is face to face or more remote. Cohesive ties
in a text, among other things, will be affected by mode.
The mode of discourse refers to “the function of the text in the event, including therefore
both the channel taken by the language – spoken or written, extempore or prepared – and its
[genre], or rhetorical mode, as narrative, didactic, persuasive, ‘phatic communion’ and so on”.
This variable determines the role and function of language in a particular situation. When
analyzing the mode of a text, the main question is ‘What is achieved by the use of language in
this context?’ For example, a fairy tale (in written form) may have a narrative or entertaining
function. A spoken conversation can be argumentative (in a discussion) or phatic (e.g. to
contact someone or to keep in touch with someone).
All three variables (field, mode, tenor) taken together enable people to characterize the
situational context specifically, and, thus, to recreate part of the language that is being used.
For instance, if we specify a field such as ‘personal interaction, at the end of the day, with the
aim of inducing contentment through recounting of familiar events’, with mode ‘spoken
monologue, imaginative narrative, extempore’ and tenor ‘intimate, mother and three-year-old
child’, we can reconstruct a great deal of this kind of bedtime story.
Halliday looks at register from the “system end" (Teich 2003, 27). This means that he
infers from the context of situation which linguistic structure and patterns are likely or unlikely
to be used in a text. Field, mode and tenor of discourse describe the context of a situation in
which language is used. Register, however, is defined as a functional variety of language
according to the use in particular settings. Hence, Halliday connected three distinct functions
of language with the three dimensions of a situation mentioned above.
“The functional components of the semantic system of a language [are] (a) ideational,
subdivided into logical and experiential; (b) interpersonal; and (c) textual. [...] the field is
reflected in the experiential meanings of the text, the tenor in the interpersonal, and the mode
in the textual meanings.” (Halliday 1990, 29)
Quirk et. al. (1989, 25) present a “five-term distinction” to categorize linguistic varieties,
and, thus, they narrow down the range of registers:
very formal – FORMAL – neutral – INFORMAL – very informal
The very formal variety of language (“extremely distant, rigid or frozen”) is often found in
written instructions. Very informal language, which is also called 'intimate, casual, slangy, or
hearty' is used between family members or close friends. However, Quirk et. al. point out that
the inner three-way distinction of formal – neutral – informal is chiefly used to designate
language.

Register Classification in the Oxford English Dictionary

In the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) the entries are classified according to the use of
an expression in different language situations. Generally, all entries are classified as 'standard'.
Additionally, some expressions are categorized differently according to the particular contexts
in which they are appropriately used. The main register labels in the Oxford Thesaurus of
English (2006) are the following:
Informal: normally used only in contexts such as conversations or letters between friends
Vulgar slang: informal language that may cause offence […]
Formal: normally used only in writing such as official documents
Technical: normally used in technical and specialist language, though not necessarily
restricted to any specific field
Literary: found only or mainly in literature written in an ‘elevated’ style
Dated: no longer used by the majority of English speakers […]

xxii
 Historical: still used today, but only to refer to some practice or article that is no longer
part of the modern world
Humorous: used with the intention of sounding funny or playful
Archaic: very old-fashioned language, not in ordinary use at all today […]
Rare: not in common use”
(Oxford Thesaurus of English 2006, Introduction ix)

C Apply Your Acquired Knowledge

Deconstruct the closing lines of The Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln (with more
research as to the history of its delivery) as to register by answering the following questions
inside the table.

“It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us – that from
these honoured dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last
full measure of devotion – that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died
in vain – that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom – and that
government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

Tenor
Field Mode
What is the relationship
What is the text about? between the author and the How is the text constructed?
reader?

What is the Is the Is it written-

content? relationship like or
personal or spoken-like?
impersonal?

Evidence
from the text Evidence
Evidence from the text
from the text

Is the content Is the Is it planned

common relationship or
sense or formal or spontaneous?
specialised? informal?

Evidence
Evidence from the text
from the text

xxiii
 Evidence Is the author What media
from the text an expert and does it use?
the reader a (Multimedia
novice? Or presentation,
are they both written
equal? report, video,
etc)

Evidence
from the text Evidence
from the text

D Evaluate Your Understanding

TEST 1: Read each item carefully. Choose the letter of the best answer.
1. Which of these is an example of an informal register?
a. a text message to a friend
b. a discussion with the President of the Republic of the Philippines about foreign policy
c. asking a professor you don’t know well
d. an essay on linguistics in a published journal
2. An example of formal register in writing would be:
a. writing an academic essay
b. writing a text message to your best friend
c. talking to your little sister
d. singing a song in the shower
3. What aspect of register is concerned with the roles and relationships of interlocutors?
a. mode b. field c. tenor d. locution

4. Written instructions in examinations usually take what register of language?

a. formal b. very formal c. informal d. very informal
5. What refers to the channel of communication?
a. mode b. field c. tenor d. locution

TEST 2: Answer the following question.

1. How would you generalize the concept of “register”?
2. How do the knowledge on register help you in your daily spoken or written activities?

E Your Assignment

Create a composition based on the register of your own choice. Fill in the diagram
below and do the composition (as short as one sentence or as long as one paragraph
composition) afterwards based on your indicated specifications in the diagram.

xxiv
 F Evaluate Your Understanding

How much have you learned from this lesson? Check the appropriate box below based
on your level of understanding rated from 1 (the lowest) to 10 (the highest).
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

xxv
 MODULE 1. LESSON 6.
GENRE
Lesson Objectives: Define genre in relation to discourse
Classify genre according to major types

A Activate Your Prior Knowledge

Recall the instances that you have given the following. When did that happen?

Giving Telling Making Giving

Information Stories Evaluations Procedures

These four categories are the classifications of genre in discourse.

B Acquire New Knowledge

A closely aligned linguistic concept to register is genre. Genre, too, refers to linguistic
variation. Rather than variation due to level of formality, however, the variation is due to the
communicative purposes to which the language is put. For example, the language used in a
scientific research paper is different from that in a recipe or a letter of recommendation. They
differ in their patterns of words, structures, and voice. For instance, in the interest of leaving
no room for ambiguity, a legal document is often characterized by “very long sentences
containing numerous and elaborate qualifications (all those elements beginning
notwithstanding, in accordance with, without prejudice to, etc.).

Genres have been characterized as staged, goal oriented social processes: social since
texts are always interactive events; goal oriented in that a text unfolds towards its interactants’
purposes; staged, because it usually takes more than one step to reach the goal.

Genres are defined as a recurrent configuration of meanings, which enact the social
practices of a culture. For example, genres can be related and distinguished by recurrent global
patterns.
 Story genres can be distinguished according to the presence or absence of sequence
in time (news reports vs other stories) and the presence or absence of a complicating
event (recount vs narrative);
 Factual genres, according to whether they explain processes or describe things
(explanation vs report);
 Argument genres according to whether they argue for a point of view or discuss two
or more points of view (exposition vs discussion).

Secondly, the organization of each genre can be distinguished by recurrent local

patterns, such as the narrative stages Orientation^Complication^ Resolution, or the exposition
stages Thesis^Arguments^Reiteration.

xxvi
 Families of Genres (from Sydney School Research)

Here families of genres are grouped into four general categories, according to their most
general social purposes and literacy teaching focus.
First, a primary goal of stories is to engage and entertain, so a key focus of teaching is
on the language resources that authors use for engaging readers.
xxvii
 Another group of genres functions primarily to provide information, particularly in the
context of educational curricula.
A third group is concerned with procedures for activities, so a teaching focus in these
genres is on their field.
A fourth group functions to evaluate – texts in the case of text responses, opinions or
issues in the case of arguments; so a pedagogic focus here is on evaluative language resources.
Of course any text will include multiple purposes, but the genre reflects its primary goal.
The arrows in the figure indicate that engaging, informing, proposing and evaluating can be
functions of various genres to some extent, but they are foregrounded more in some than in
others.
Deepening on each of the subtypes will be done on the lessons on written discourse.

C Apply Your Acquired Knowledge

Classify the following based on the four major genre categories discussed (stories,
informing, procedures, or evaluating).
1.
Tired of sobby melodramas and stupid comedies? Why not watch a film with a difference? American
Beauty by Sam Mendes is both a drama and a comedy, which definitely absorbed the best features of the
genres, creating a powerful and mind-boggling cocktail of love, hatred, sinful passion, rebellion, loneliness,
fear and total liberation.
2.
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Butter and line a square cake tin.
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in eggs, bananas and vanilla.
4. Sift the dry ingredients together.
5. Mix together the milk and lemon juice.
6. Alternating, add the dry ingredients and the milk, beating between each addition
7. Bake in the oven for approximately 45 mins or until a skewer comes out clean.
8. Rest in the tin for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool.
3.

ENELOOP: Why Just Change Channels When You can Change The World?

xxviii
4.
Producers and consumers. We have seen that organisms in an ecosystem are first classified as
producers or as consumers of chemical energy.

5.
On a cold, frosty day, an ant began dragging out some of the grain he had stored during the summer
and began drying it in thick grassland. A grasshopper, half-dead with hunger, came by and asked the ant for
a piece of food to save his life.
“What is you do the past summer?” responded the ant.
“Oh,” said the grasshopper, “I kept myself busy all day long and all night long.”
“Well then,” remarked the ant, as he laughed and shut his storehouse, “since you kept yourself busy
by singing all summer, I won’t give you any.”
The grasshopper went home hungry and died at the peak of that wintry season.

D Evaluate Your Understanding

TEST: Answer the following. Write the letter of the best answer.
1. What is the difference between register and genre?
a. Genre varies based on communicative purposes to which language is put while register
varies based on formality.
b. Register varies based on culture while genre is based on the use of text associated with
particular situations of use.
c. Genre refers to the has time element and register does not vary with time.
2. Why is genre a social process?
a. because it usually takes more than one step to reach the goal.
b. because texts are always interactive events
c. because a text unfolds towards its interactants’ purposes
3. Which of the following is not a subgenre of stories?
a. protocol b. narrative c. anecdote
4. Which of the following is a story not sequenced in time?
a. recount b. exemplum c. news story
5. The following are the major families of genres EXCEPT ________.
a. evaluating b. informing c. describing

2. How do the knowledge on register help you in your daily spoken or written activities?

E Your Assignment

Cut out or print one sample for each of the four major families of genre in discourse
and paste it on a sheet of bond paper. Identify its type in the sheet where you pasted it.

F Evaluate Your Understanding

How much have you learned from this lesson? Check the appropriate box below based
on your level of understanding rated from 1 (the lowest) to 10 (the highest).
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

xxix
 MODULE 1. LESSON 7.
SPOKEN DISCOURSE
Lesson Objectives: Identify aspects of spoken discourse subjected to discourse analysis
Do simple spoken discourse analysis through Birmingham Model

A Activate Your Prior Knowledge

Study a short conversation below.

A: Why did Mary go to town, Lucy?
B: To buy some groceries.
A: ____________
Options to complete the blank above include “That’s good”, “How dare she leave!”, or
“You got it correctly”. mother who had asked Mary to buy groceries would say “That’s good”; a
father who asked Mary to do another errand at home instead of groceries would have said “How
dare she leave!”; and a teacher who asked Lucy about a story character named “Mary” would
have replied “You got it correctly.” In general, the answer of A would depend on the context of
the spoken conversation.

B Acquire New Knowledge

Spoken discourse at this portion will be analysed using the Birmingham Model of the
University of Birmingham. The Birmingham model is certainly not the only valid approach to
analysing discourse, but it is a relatively simple and powerful model which has connexions
with the study of speech acts but which, at the same time, tries to capture the larger structures,
the 'wholes'. Analysts found in the language of traditional native-speaker school classrooms a
rigid pattern, where teachers and pupils spoke according to very fixed perceptions of their roles
and where the talk could be seen to conform to highly structured sequences. An extract from
their data illustrates this:

(1.6) (T = teacher, P = any pupil who speaks)

T: Now then . . . I've got some things here, too.

Hands up. What's that, what is it?

P: Saw.

T: It's a saw, yes this is a saw. What do we do

with a saw?

P: Cut wood.

T: Yes. You're shouting out though. What do we do with a saw? Marvelette.

P: Cut wood.

T: We cut wood. And, erm, what do we do with a hacksaw, this hacksaw?

xxx
 P: Cut trees.

T: Do we cut trees with this?

P: No. No.

T: Hands up. What do we do with this?

P: Cut wood.

T: Do we cut wood with this?

P: No.

T: What do we do with that then?

P: Cut wood.

T: We cut wood with that. What do we do with that?

P: Sir.

T: Cleveland.

P: Metal.

T: We cut metal. Yes we cut metal. And, er, I've got this here. What's that? Trevor.

P: An axe.

T: It's an axe yes. What do I cut with the axe?

P: Wood, wood.

T: Yes I cut wood with the axe. Right . . . Now then, I've got some more things here . . .
(etc.)

(Sinclair and Coulthard, 1975)

This is only a short extract, but nonetheless, a clear pattern seems to emerge (and one
that many will be familiar with from their own schooldays). The first thing we notice, intuitively,
is that, although this is clearly part of a larger discourse (a 'lesson'), in itself it seems to have
a completeness. A bit of business seems to commence with the teacher saying 'Now then . . .',
and that same bit of business ends with the teacher saying 'Right. . . Now then'. The teacher
(in this case a man) in his planning and execution of the lesson decides that the lesson shall
be marked out in some way; he does not just run on without a pause from one part of the
lesson to another. In fact he gives his pupils a clear signal of the beginning and end of this
mini-phase of the lesson by using the words now then and right in a particular way (with falling
intonation and a short pause afterwards) that make them into a sort of 'frame' on either side
of the sequence of questions and answers. Framing move is precisely what analysts call the
function of such utterances. The two framing moves, together with the question and answer
sequence that falls between them, can be called a transaction, which again captures the
feeling of what is being done with language here, rather in the way that we talk of a 'transaction'
xxxi
in a shop between a shopkeeper and a customer, which will similarly be a completed whole,
with a recognisable start and finish.

However, framing move and transaction are only labels to attach to certain structural
features, and the analogy with their non- specialist meanings should not be taken too far. This
classroom extract is very structured and formal, but transactions with framing moves of this
kind are common in a number of other settings too: telephone calls are perhaps the most
obvious, especially when we wish to close the call once the necessary business is done; a job
interview is another situation where various phases of the interview are likely to be marked by
the chairperson or main interviewer saying things like 'right', 'well now' or 'okay', rather in the
way the teacher does. Notice, too, that there is a fairly limited number of words available in
English for framing transactions (e.g. right, okay, so, etc.), and notice how some people
habitually use the same ones.

If we return to our piece of classroom data, the next problem is: does the question-
answer sequence between the teacher and pupils have any internal structure, or is it just a
string of language forms to which we can give individual function or speech-act labels? Analysts
show clearly that it does have a structure. Looking at the extract, we can see a pattern:

(1) the teacher asks something ('What's that?'),

(2) a pupil answers ('An axe') and

(3) the teacher acknowledges the answer and comments on it ('It's an axe, yes').

The pattern of (1), (2) and (3) is then repeated. So we could label the pattern in the
following way:

1. Ask T

2. Answer P

3. Comment T

This gives us then a regular sequence of TPT-TPT-TPT-TPT, etc. So we can now return
to our extract and begin to mark off the boundaries that create this pattern:

xxxii
 We can now isolate a typical segment between double slashes (//) and use it as a basic
unit in our description:

(1.8) T: // What do we do with a saw? Marvelette. /

P: Cut wood. /

T: We cut wood. //

Analysts call this unit an exchange. This particular exchange consists of a question, an
answer and a comment, and so it is a three-part exchange. Each of the parts are given the
name move by analysts. Here are some other examples of exchanges, each with three moves:

(1.9) A: What time is it?

B: Six thirty.

A: Thanks.

(1.10) A: Tim's coming tomorrow.

B: Oh yeah.

A: Yes.

(1.11) A: Here, hold this.

B: (takes the box)

A: Thanks.

Each of these exchanges consists of three moves, but it is only in (1) that the first move
('What time is it?') seems to be functioning as a question. The first move in (2) is heard as giving
information, and the first move in (3) as a command. Equally, the second moves seem to have
the function, respectively, of (1) an answer, (2) an acknowledgement and (3) a non-verbal
response (taking the box). The third moves are in all three exchanges functioning as feedback
on the second move: (1) to be polite and say thanks, (2) to confirm the information and (3) to
say thanks again. In order to capture the similarity of the pattern in each case, analysts call
the first move in each exchange an opening move, the second an answering move and the third
a follow-up move. Analysts prefer to talk of initiation, response and follow-up. We can now
label our example exchanges using these terms:

In these exchanges we can observe the importance of each move in the overall functional
unit. Every exchange has to be initiated, whether with a statement, a question or a command;
xxxiii
equally naturally, someone responds, whether in words or action. The status of the follow-up
move is slightly different: in the classroom it fulfils the vital role of telling the pupils whether
they have done what the teacher wanted them to; in other situations it may be an act of
politeness, and the follow-up elements might even be extended further, as in this Spanish
example:

(1.12) A: Oiga, por favor, qui hora es? (Please, what time is it?)

B: Las cinco y media. (Half past five.)

A: Gracias. (Thank you.)

B: De nada. (You’re welcome.)

Here A asks B the time, B replies ('half past five'), A thanks B ('gracias'), and then B says
'de nada' ('not at all'). Many English speakers would feel that such a lengthy ritual was
unnecessary for such a minor favour and would omit the fourth part, reserving phrases such
as 'not at all' for occasions where it is felt a great service has been done, for example where
someone has been helped out of a difficult situation. The patterns of such exchanges may vary
from culture to culture, and language learners may have to adjust to differences. They also
vary from setting to setting: when we say 'thank you' to a ticket collector at a station barrier
as our clipped ticket is handed back to us, British people would not expect 'not at all' from the
ticket collector.
The three-part exchanges we have looked at so far are fascinating in another sense, too,
in that, taken out of context and without the third part, it is often impossible to decide exactly
what the functions of the individual speech acts in the exchange are in any completely
meaningful way. Con- sider, for example:
(1.15) A: What time is it?

B: Five past six.

A: __________

What could fill the third part here? Here are some possibilities:

1. A: Thanks.

2. A: Good! Clever girl!

3. A: No it isn't, and you know it isn't; it's half past and you're late again!

'Thanks' suggests that A's question was a genuine request for information. 'Clever girl!'
smacks of the classroom (e.g. a lesson on 'telling the time' with a big demonstration clock), and
'No it isn't . . . etc.' suggests an accusation or a verbal trap for someone who is to be reproached.
Neither of the last two is a genuine request for information; teachers usually already know the
answers to the questions they ask of their pupils and the reproachful parent or employer in
the last case is not ignorant of the time. These examples underline the fact that function is
arrived at with reference to the participants, roles and settings in any discourse, and that
linguistic forms are interpreted in light of these. This is not to say that all communication
between teachers and pupils is of the curious kind exemplified in (1.15); sometimes teachers
ask 'real' questions ('How did you spend the weekend!'), but equally, a lot of language teaching
question-and-answer sessions reflect the 'unreal' questions of Sinclair and Coulthard's data
('What's the past tense of take?; 'What does wash basin mean!'). Nor do we wish to suggest that
xxxiv
'unreal' classroom questions serve no purpose; they are a useful means for the teacher of
checking the state of knowledge of the students and of providing opportunities for practising
language forms.

C Apply Your Acquired Knowledge

EXERCISE 1. Put slash (/) and double slash (//) to the classroom discussion below to
separate segments of the initiation-response-follow up pattern. (T = teacher; P = pupil/s)

T : So, have you read the story I assigned you to read yesterday?

P : Yes, Ma’am.

T : That’s great. How do you like it? Gaspar.

P : It was very interesting to read, Ma’am. I mean… I never heard of such a story before.

T : Right. So, who are the characters of the story? Magarette.

P : Madeleine, Sister Clavel and the other school girls.

T : Yes, they are the characters.

D Evaluate Your Understanding

TEST 1: Define the following terms:

1. framing move
2. transaction
3. initiation
4. response
5. follow-up
TEST 2: Answer the following items
1. How is discourse in the classroom different from a daily conversation?
2. Explain about the initiation-response-follow up pattern of conversation.
3. How would you explain this statement: “Function is arrived at with reference to the
participants, roles and settings in any discourse.”
4. What does this lesson have to do with the study of discourse?

E Your Assignment

Complete the list of what you think the most common framing words or phrases are in
English and make a list of framing words in any other language you know. Do framing words
translate directly from language to language?

xxxv
 F Evaluate Your Understanding

How much have you learned from this lesson? Check the appropriate box below based
on your level of understanding rated from 1 (the lowest) to 10 (the highest).
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

xxxvi
 MODULE 1. LESSON 8.
WRITTEN DISCOURSE
Lesson Objectives: Tell the aspects of written discourse
Examine texts according to aspects of written discourse analysis

A Activate Your Prior Knowledge

Read an newspaper narrative account below printed in The Birmingham Post in March
1987.

'It was like a horror movie. It was a hot night and Bartholomew was lying under a mosquito
net. He suddenly started screaming. 'We rushed to the bedroom to find a huge snake trying
to strangle him. It was coiled around his arms and neck and was going down his body.' Mrs
Dryden and her husband, Peter, tried to stab the creature with knives but the python bit the
boy several times before escaping.’

This text requires us to activate our knowledge of pythons as dangerous creatures which
may threaten human life, which strangle their prey and to whose presence one must react with
a certain urgency. More than this we make the cognitive link between 'a hot night' and the time
of the event (this is implicit rather than explicit in the text). The boy's screaming must be taken
to be a consequence of the python attacking him (rather than, say, prior to the arrival of the
python). The 'creature' must be taken to be the python rather than the boy, since parents do
not normally stab their children in order to save their lives. All this is what the reader must
bring to any text. By this, we are venturing towards the analysis of a written text.

B Acquire New Knowledge

TEXT
Text is something that happens, in the form of talking or writing, listening or reading.
When we analyse it, we analyse the product of this process, and the term 'text' is usually taken
as referring to the product...
In lay usage (i.e. non-specialist usage), the term text is generally applied exclusively to
written material and sometimes more specifically to a course book, for example: a teacher
might ask her students to bring their 'texts' to the next lesson. However, when we talk about
text as linguists, we are using it with a much broader meaning. For our discussion, text means
any stretch of language in use on which we choose to focus. A university lecture is a text, as
is the verbal exchange that takes place when you buy something, or the exchange of greetings:
'Hello, there!' 'Hi! or a single cry of Help!
We may speak of a complete text to refer to the whole of the language event (for example,
a whole research paper, an entire letter, an entire book, a complete lecture); or we may speak
of a text fragment (a paragraph from a book, five minutes of a one hour lecture, and so on).

AUTHENTIC TEXT
The description of text given so far presupposes authenticity. In other words, we normally
expect a text to be authentic, that it was originally produced as part of a piece of
xxxvii
communication and not invented for some exemplificatory purpose. Thus, if I wanted to give
you an example of a set of minutes (of a meeting), I could use either of the following:
(i) a text which was produced as a record of a meeting which actually occurred.
(ii) a text which I wrote myself based on imaginary events, but drawing on my experience
of many hours spent writing and/or reading real minutes.
I would classify the first of these as authentic and the second as inauthentic (or invented
or constructed or artificial or simulated, etc.). In the unlikely event of my choosing the second
option, I would feel obliged to state clearly that this was constructed, artificial data that I had
concocted myself rather than a real set of minutes.

DATA AND CORPUS

For discourse analysts, texts constitute potential data. Data are the phenomena under
investigation or the phenomena that provide evidence for the claims that the analyst makes.
Thus, the research process in which the analyst is engaged is the investigation of texts.
Usually, this involves the putting together of a collection or corpus of texts from which the data
are to be selected.

CONTEXT
Text is not created in a vacuum. Text is created - indeed it is part – of a context. The
notion of context is central to the study of discourse. People sometimes complain that a given
utterance attributed to them (by the Press, for example, or in a court of law) was misinterpreted,
because it was 'taken out of context'. By this they may mean one of two things: (a) that the rest
of what they said has been ignored or (b) that the circumstances in which the utterance was
made and all the paraphernalia of presuppositions, etc., have been ignored. In either case, the
complainant is appealing to the indisputable view that the sense of an utterance is not inherent
in the words and grammar alone, but is crucially affected by contextual factors. Context in the
first sense we can call co-text; the second can be labelled context of situation. A major aspect
of context of situation is sometimes labelled context of culture. Some people treat this as
separate from the context of situation, but it seems to make more sense to see it as an integral
part of it.

CO-TEXT
At the micro-level, a stretch of language under consideration can be seen to fit into the
context of its surrounding text. The surrounding text is the co-text. The sense of a chunk of
language - a few words or a paragraph - is in part dependent on words and paragraphs around
it; these constitute the co-text of the chunk in focus.

CONTEXT OF SITUATION
The context of situation is made up of all the phenomena which affect the discourse. The
context of situation includes the immediate and wider environment in which the text actually
occurs, like the classroom in the case of a teaching discourse, the shop or market in a sales
transaction, the workshop in the case of a discussion about a gearbox replacement.
It may be that the physical setting of the discourse is not germane to the nature of the
text itself. In addition to the physical location, there is the location in time of the event: time
in history, time of the year, time of day may all play a determining role.
The interactants/ participants also play a part in the context of situation. In the case of
written text the situation is more complex as the writer writes for an imagined reader to whom
s/he attributes certain knowledge and certain ignorance, but the text is processed only by real
readers who may differ considerably from the imagined and may have more or less difficulty
understanding the text.

xxxviii
CONTEXT OF CULTURE
Every immediate situation is located in a cultural context. The context of culture is an
intricate complex of various social phenomena involving historical and geographical settings
but also more general aspects like the field of the activity: education, medicine, provision of
goods and services in exchange for money. Car maintenance discourse in a highly hierarchical
society may be different from that which takes place in a relatively egalitarian society.
Classroom discourse takes place within a wider cultural context of, say, university education
or secondary school education, or slightly more specifically Filipino university education, or
Asian University education. The discipline in question also plays a part in the context of
culture: thus a physics lecture takes place within the cultural practices and traditions of the
field of physics at large as well as in a particular education system or institution.

TEXTUALITY
De Beaugrande (1997) posits a set of criteria for textuality, well known from earlier
publications, including De Beaugrande and Dressler (1981). These are listed below:
DE BEAUGRANDE'S CRITERIA
cohesion: the relation between forms and patterns
coherence: the way meanings are understood
intentionality: what text producers intend, mean to achieve
informativity: the extent to which the text tells you what you don't already know
situationality: the relation between the text-event and the situation in which it occurs
intertextuality: the relation between this text and other texts
Optimally, we might ask two things of a contextual model of variation in discourse: (a)
that given a text, we should be able to say something about the context of situation that
produced it; and (b) that given a context of situation, we should be able to predict the type of
text which it generates.

C Apply Your Acquired Knowledge

EXERCISE: What can you deduce about the context of situation of the following texts? An
example is given for you.
Warning. Customers are advised that videoscan closed circuit television
is in operation with video-recording.
Physical setting: Store or supermarket. Written notice, large size for easy reading, displayed in prominent
place e.g. at high level. Context of culture: retail sales, large, relatively impersonal company (not one-to-one
small shop) with acceptance of shop-lifting as a serious possibility. Participants: store management to
customers. Impersonal style. Co-text: no predictable precise co-text though other texts in the same
environment indicating location of goods, special offers, prices, etc.

1. Please submit your lesson plan three days before scheduled classroom
observation. For immediate compliance.
2.

xxxix
3.

D Evaluate Your Understanding

TEST: Answer the following items.

1. How could you classify a text as “authentic”?
2. What are the two aspects of context? How would you differentiate these?
3. How does context help in understanding the discourse of a written text?
4. What is context of culture? What are its aspects?
5. What are the criteria of textuality discussed?

E Your Assignment

Cut out or print out an authentic text and discuss about it based on its context.

F Evaluate Your Understanding

How much have you learned from this lesson? Check the appropriate box below based
on your level of understanding rated from 1 (the lowest) to 10 (the highest).
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

xl
 MODULE OUTPUT
For your module output, cut out or print out a written discourse and transcribe a clip
from a movie (do include the source information such as author/scriptwriter/ director, title,
and date/year). Analyze each based on the following items. Write each analysis as a complete
composition in paragraphs. Be guided by the criteria given in the rubrics.

1. Describe in general the speech act of the texts (in case of the clip transcription,
choose one of the most significant part dialogue).
2. Identify the register inherent in the texts given. Tell why the author/ scriptwriter
used this type of register for the text/ dialogues.
3. Tell the genre of the text/ dialogues and discuss about your answer.
4. For the clip transcript, use Brimingham model for analysis. For the text, analyze it
based on the context by which it was written.

RUBRICS FOR TEXT/TRANSCRIPT ANALYSIS

4 1
5 3 2
Criteria (Excellent)
(Very
(Satisfactory) (Good)
(Needs
Satisfactory) Improvement)

Only about Only about Only about Less that 50

Correctness
All answers 90 percent of 75 percent of 50 percent of percent of the
of Content
(50%) are correct. the answers the answers the answers answers are
are correct. are correct. are correct. correct.

Composition
Composition Composition Composition
is
is somehow is poorly is not
Composition satisfactorily
organized; 25 organized; 50 organized;
Organization is excellently organized; 10
percent of percent of more than 50
and organized percent of
Mechanics
the the percent of the
with the
(30%) composition composition composition
impeccable composition
has mistakes has mistakes has mistakes
mechanics. has mistakes
in in in
in
mechanics. mechanics. mechanics.
mechanics.

All items
Completeness Only 3 items Only 2 items Only 1 item No item is
were
of Output are answered are answered is answered answered
(20%) answered
completely. completely. completely. completely.
completely.

xli
 MODULE REFLECTION

Complete each clause for your reflection on the importance of discourse.

1. Summing up what I learned in my journey through this lesson, it enables me to

___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________

2. It made me realize
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________

3. I need to further learn about

___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________

REFERENCES

Gee, J.P. and Hanford, M. (2012). The Routeledge Handbook of Discourse Analysis. New
York: Taylor and Francis Group.

MacCarthy, M.A. (2000) Discourse Analysis for Language Teachers. UK: Cambridge
University Press

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discourse

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speech_act

http://www.glottopedia.org/index.php/Register_(discourse)

http://www.philseflsupport.com/textschema.htm

https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/discourse-analysis/

xlii
xliii